Big Bag Recovery

Member | Tracking Since June 2025

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Sustainability Summary

Verified
  • Government-accredited stewardship scheme for recycling large woven polypropylene and LDPE bags.
  • Traceable collections feed into local Australian remanufacturing — supports circular supply.
  • Partners with social enterprises to create regional jobs.
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Big Bag Recovery Sustainability Profile

Sustainability Summary

Verified
  • Government-accredited stewardship scheme for recycling large woven polypropylene and LDPE bags.
  • Traceable collections feed into local Australian remanufacturing — supports circular supply.
  • Partners with social enterprises to create regional jobs.
Powered by Tracker AI BETA; there may be errors

What do our labels mean?

Australian Government Accredited Product Stewardship Scheme Logo

Australian Government Accredited Product Stewardship Scheme
Telstra Best of Business Awards 2025 – ACT Winner (Embracing Innovation) Logo

Telstra Best of Business Awards 2025 – ACT Winner (Embracing Innovation)
Telstra Best of Business Awards 2025 – ACT Winner (Promoting Sustainability) Logo

Telstra Best of Business Awards 2025 – ACT Winner (Promoting Sustainability)

Australia's current co-regulatory framework

Big Bag Recovery is the Australian Government Accredited Product Stewardship scheme for plastic bags over 15kg/l of contents (sacks and bulk bags). The program includes recyclable bags that are woven polypropylene (wPP) and low density polyethylene (LDPE). The program allows for two sizes: sacks and bulk bags.

To date, Big Bag Recovery has recovered over 9.3 million kilograms of plastic, reduced more than 13.6 million kg of COâ‚‚e emissions, saved over $23 million in landfill costs, and created 93 circular economy jobs. Every collection is fully traceable - from pick-up to remanufacture - giving brand owners auditable proof of their plastic's end-of-life journey.

About Big Bag Recovery

  • Status
  • Employees
  • 5 - 25
  • Industry
  • Environmental Services
  • Country
  • Australia
  • Founded
  • 2015

Big Bag Recovery Services

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At Big Bag Recovery, we provide a solution to bulk bags and sacks made from woven polypropylene, or low density polyethylene. We are the only federally accredited stewardship program for these materials in Australia, and are offering true track and traceability of these plastics. We work with businesses to report on every single pick up, and overall weights to then calculate carbon emissions reduced and circular economy jobs provided.

Serviceable Locations: Australia

General Sustainability Strategy

Big Bag Recovery helps businesses navigate Australia's mandatory co-regulatory packaging obligations by providing a federally accredited product stewardship pathway. As the only government-accredited scheme for bulk bags and sacks, Big Bag Recovery works with brands, importers and manufacturers to build plastic stewardship into their ESG and sustainability strategies - with live dashboard reporting on environmental performance metrics including COâ‚‚e reductions, landfill cost savings and circular economy jobs created.

Sustainability Reporting

Big Bag Recovery provides brand partners with auditable, traceable environmental performance data for use in ESG disclosures, sustainability reports and regulatory submissions. Every plastic collection is documented with GPS verification, photo evidence and weight data - giving businesses credible, third-party verified metrics on landfill diversion, carbon emission reductions and circular economy contributions. These measurable outcomes help organisations meet their reporting obligations under Australia's national packaging co-regulatory framework.

Product Supply Chain & Circularity

Big Bag Recovery closes the loop on woven polypropylene (wPP) and LDPE bulk bags and sacks - from farm gate, factory floor or mine site to Australia's first purpose-built bulk bag recycling facility in Toowoomba, QLD. Collected materials are processed into recycled resin pellets and remanufactured into new Australian-made products, creating a fully traceable, local circular supply chain. Businesses receive end-to-end visibility of their plastic packaging from pick-up to remanufacture.

Biodiversity & Nature Preservation

Plastic bulk bags that escape into the environment pose a serious threat to soils, waterways and wildlife. Big Bag Recovery prevents these materials from entering Australia's ecosystems by providing farmers, miners and manufacturers with a responsible, accessible alternative to burning, burying or landfilling plastic bags. By diverting millions of kilograms of plastic from the environment annually, Big Bag Recovery directly supports the protection of Australian land, water and biodiversity.

Social Responsibility

Big Bag Recovery partners with social enterprises - including Endeavour Foundation - to deliver inclusive employment opportunities at its Toowoomba recycling facility, creating meaningful jobs for people facing barriers to work. The scheme also supports regional and rural communities by collecting directly from farms, mines and remote worksites across Australia. With a growing network of council drop-off points and social enterprise partnerships, Big Bag Recovery embeds community benefit at the heart of its circular economy model.

Big Bag Recovery Sustainability Actions

Opening of Australia's First Purpose-Built Bulk Bag Recycling Facility

On 26 February 2025, Big Bag Recovery and sister company Circular Communities Australia officially opened Australia's first purpose-built bulk bag recycling plant in Toowoomba, Queensland. The 2,300 sqm state-of-the-art facility processes woven polypropylene (wPP) and LDPE bags into recycled resin pellets, which are remanufactured into products including water evaporation discs and community seating. The facility is expected to divert approximately 4,000 tonnes of plastic from landfill annually, prevent over 5,871 tonnes of COâ‚‚e emissions per year, and grow from eight to fifteen full-time jobs in Toowoomba.

Social enterprise partnerships for inclusive employment

Big Bag Recovery collaborates with social enterprises including Endeavour Foundation to create meaningful employment opportunities at the Circular Communities Australia Toowoomba facility. These roles provide pathways to work for individuals who have faced barriers to employment, embedding social value directly into the plastic recovery supply chain. This approach demonstrates that environmental stewardship and social inclusion can be delivered together through circular economy design.

Council drop-off network expansion

Big Bag Recovery has expanded its national collection network by partnering with local councils to establish community drop-off points at waste transfer facilities. Recently, Port Macquarie-Hastings Council opened Big Bag Recovery drop-off points at its Kew, Wauchope and Cairncross waste facilities, providing residents and businesses in regional NSW with access to free, traceable bulk bag recycling. This council partnership model is being replicated across Australia to maximise geographic accessibility and collection volumes.

Big Bag Recovery partners with GT Recycling

Big Bag Recovery has partnered with GT Recycling to improve the recovery and local processing of industrial plastic bags in Victoria. Through this partnership, woven polypropylene (wPP) and LDPE bulk bags and sacks are recovered and processed at GT Recycling’s Moolap facility. The materials are diverted from landfill and reprocessed into recycled outputs that can re-enter manufacturing supply chains. The partnership also strengthens domestic recycling infrastructure by keeping processing local, reducing transport distances, and supporting regional circular economy capability.

Fonterra + Circular Communities Australia (Packaging Waste Reduction Initiative)

Big Bag Recovery has supported Circular Communities Australia in efforts to reduce plastic waste from industrial packaging and improve recovery outcomes across the supply chain. The initiative focuses on diverting used packaging materials away from landfill and into established recycling pathways. It supports circular economy outcomes by enabling recovery and reprocessing of industrial plastics through existing recycling networks. This work also supports collaboration between manufacturing and recycling sectors, improving how packaging materials are managed at end of life and contributing to lower material loss across the system.

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Big Bag Recovery Sustainability Commitments

2015

Identifying a Sustainable Solution for Plastic Packaging: Big Bag Recovery

Founder and Managing Director, Stephen Richards, identified a problem with the disposal of bulk bags and sacks, with farmers burning and burying bags. First collections were completed to send these materials for recycling.

2021

Australian Government Accredited Product Stewardship Scheme

Applied for and was approved as an Australian Government Accredited Product Stewardship Scheme.

2025

ACT Winner, Telstra Best of Business Awards

Big Bag Recovery was named the ACT State Winner in two categories of the 2025 Telstra Best of Business Awards - Embracing Innovation and Promoting Sustainability. This recognition validates the scheme's practical, traceable approach to plastic recovery and the collective impact of the farmers, manufacturers and businesses participating in the program.

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What do our labels mean?

Australian Government Accredited Product Stewardship Scheme Logo

Australian Government Accredited Product Stewardship Scheme
Telstra Best of Business Awards 2025 – ACT Winner (Embracing Innovation) Logo

Telstra Best of Business Awards 2025 – ACT Winner (Embracing Innovation)
Telstra Best of Business Awards 2025 – ACT Winner (Promoting Sustainability) Logo

Telstra Best of Business Awards 2025 – ACT Winner (Promoting Sustainability)

About Big Bag Recovery

  • Status
  • Employees
  • 5 - 25
  • Industry
  • Environmental Services
  • Country
  • Australia
  • Founded
  • 2015

Sustainable Development Goals

Big Bag Recovery is committed to advancing these Global Goals to promote prosperity for people & planet.

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Responsible Product Disposal

  • Bulk Bags & Sacks
  • Soft Plastics: Pallet Wrap & Plastic Sacks

Big Bag Recovery Sustainability News

Australia’s First Bulk Bag Recycling Plant is Here – Circular Communities Australia

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Big Bag Recovery Wins ACT honours in 2025 Telstra Best of Business Awards

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